Trials of a Princess
by The-True-Slytherin-Princess
Summary: 3rd installment in my 'of a Princess' series. Concerned for her safety, Ali's parents decided it was best to pull her out of Auradon Prep and bring her home. With no choice, Ali is forced to leave behind all her friends, and especially Carlos. How will the couple be able to cope with this? Do Ali's parents have other plans for bringing her home?
1. Chapter 1

**Third installment of my 'of a Princess' series. I encourage you to read Untold Story of a Princess and Adventures of a Princess before this one, not entirely necessary, but it will give you background on Ali and Carlos's relationship. I also have a oneshot series entitled Tales of a Princess, there's only one now but I have some more that are just waiting to be proofread and published.**

 **Lastly, thank you to everyone who like, followed, reviewed, and stuck it out with Carlos and Ali! You guys truly are amazing! I'm going to try and respond to reviews for this story so feel free to drop one!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

When we last saw our lovely gang of teenagers, Cotillion had come to close. True love was in the air for many, and it seemed like it would be nothing but happily ever after. However, life isn't a fairy tale.

ALI

I looked around my room. Audrey and I had just finished packing all my stuff. My side of the room looked seriously empty. I walked over to my closet and checked one last time, making sure it was empty, but I found my crown box on the top shelf. I reached up and pulled it down.

"We forgot this," I turned to Audrey, showing the box to her.

She smiled, "Which one is in there?"

I opened it, "The old one." I picked up the intricate silver headpiece and titled it, watching it glimmer and shine in the light. I looked at it for a minute before placing it back in the box. "Here," I handed to box to Audrey.

Her eyes grew wide, "I can't take this."

I nodded, "Yes, you can. I got a new one, remember?" I smiled and pushed the box into her hands.

"Thanks," She placed the box on top of her desk.

I checked my watch, 1:30pm, "The limo will be here in a half hour."

Audrey opened her mouth, but was interrupted with a knock on the door. She walked over to open the door and we were greeted with all our friends.

It was suddenly like a little party. Carlos walked through first, a short greeting to Audrey, and then walked straight to me. He pulled me into a hug, wrapping his arms around my waist as I placed mine around his neck.

"I'm going to miss you," he whispered into my ear.

I pulled back and pressed my forehead against his, having to stand up on my toes to do so, "I'm going to miss you too. We'll still see each other though." He gave me a small smile. "I'm not going to let them tear up apart, I promise."

His hands tightened on my waist, "Good, because I won't either."

"C'mon lovebirds, we're all going to miss her!" Jay yelled at us.

Evie hit his shoulder, "Shut up, they're cute together."

I laughed as I came off of my toes. Facing all my other friends, I smiled at them. Ben and Mal were holding hands, Doug had his arm around Evie, Lonnie and Jay were standing next to each other. I can't believe this is the last time I'll be in my room with my friends.

"Ali," Audrey called my attention, "Don't forget, you need to wear this." She had my new crown, which just happened to be my mother's old one, in her hands as she walked up to me.

I drew in a breathe and nodded, carefully picking up the crown. I walked over to the mirror mounted above the desk. placing the crown down, I took my hair out of the ponytail I tied it in, running my fingers through the long blonde tresses. I picked up the crown and placed it on my head, I didn't even know Audrey was behind me until i felt her pinning my hair around it so it wouldn't fall in my face.

"Thank," I whispered as I took in my appearance.

"You look just like mom," Audrey smiled as she stepped back a little. She was right, I looked exactly like our mom.

"Knock, knock!"

I looked at the door, "Dad!" I ran up and hugged him, even though they are the ones taking me out of school, I'm still excited to see my parents.

"Are you ready to go, Ali-girl?" His eyes were shinning, which meant he was happy that I was coming home. I'm glad someone was happy about it.

"Hey Dad!" Audrey greeted him, hugging him as well.

Lonnie, Ben and Doug shook hands with hands with my dad, and Carlos shook his hand last, being polite but I knew he was upset with my parents for taking me away.

"Dad, this is Jay, Evie, and Mal. You haven't officially met yet," I laughed as I introduced the rest of my friends.

They shook hands and exchanged a quick greeting before my dad spoke up again, "Got your stuff all ready?"

I nodded and pointed to a pile of luggage by my bed. Ben and Jay were quick to help and they both grabbed my pink trunk, which was the heaviest of the luggage. Doug and my dad each took a suitcase, which left me with my backpack and a small duffel bag. Carlos snatched up the duffel bag before I could and took my hand; squeezing it as we followed everyone outside.

I watched as Ben and Jay placed my trunk into the back of the limo, then proceeded to lift the luggage into it as well, closing it after Carlos put my duffel bag in. I took a deep breath and turned to Mal, guessing I should start my goodbyes.

"I feel like this is all my fault," Mal told me quietly.

I shook my head and smiled, "It's not, my parents are just overprotective."

She gave me a smile and hugged me. We let go and I turned to hug Evie next.

"This place is not going to be the same without you," Evie whispered as we separated.

I gave a sad smile, "I'm going to miss all of you so much."

Jay was next, he smiled at me, "Who's going to sit in the library with me and make jokes about the other kids now?"

I laughed, "I'm sure you can find someone to fill that void."

He laughed as he pulled me in for a hug.

Lonnie squeezed me next, and I mean literally squeezed me, "I'm going to miss you."

"You live 15 minutes away, come visit whenever," I reminded her.

She laughed and released me, "I plan on it."

I laughed and walked up to Ben, who was still standing next to the limo, talking to my dad, "Benny-boo!"

He stared at me and I knew he was trying not to laugh, "Don't call me that."

I grinned at him, but still he opened his arms so I could hug him, "Don't give your parents too rough of a time, okay?" He whispered into my ear.

I stepped back and gave him a smirk, "No promises. Remember to take time to be a teenager while I'm gone, okay?"

He chuckled, "No promises," he echoed back and winked at me.

Doug was standing next to him, and he was quick to envelop me in a hug. We didn't say anything, we didn't need to. As best friends, we already knew what needed to be said to each other. Tears started forming in my eyes as Doug and I separated and I had to say goodbye to the person I never wanted to say that too.

Carlos. Okay, now I'm actually crying, so was he. I basically collapsed into him and he hugged me so tight that he lifted me off the ground. I heard my dad clearing his throat behind me, a subtle signal that we needed to get going. I loosened my grip and Carlos set me back on the ground, stepping back I lightly pressed my lips against his.

"I love you," He whispered.

"I love you too," and with one last peck, I turned to get into the limo.

Audrey was coming home for the weekend, she said it was because she missed mom and dad, but I think it's more that she'll miss me when she gets back to school. My dad climbed in the limo first, followed by Audrey, I stood at the door and looked over my shoulder, giving my friends a small smile and a wave, I climbed in as well. The limo started to pull away slowly, I watched through the rear window as my school, my friends, and my boyfriend, became so far away I couldn't see them.

I cant believe this is happening.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! I finally have a complete plan for this story and now that I'm done with my semester of college, I have more time to write! So, updates might be a little more frequent over the summer.**

 **I said I was to reply to reviews for this story, so here it goes!**

 **ceara1888: I really didn't want it to happen but, I have a plan. Don't worry.**

 **katmar1994: She might go back; then again, she might not.**

 **Grace (guest): Sorry to break your heart, maybe this will make it better? I hope you enjoy this story as well!**

 **DISCLAIMER- I own nothing.**

* * *

ALI

We pulled up to my house, well castle I guess. As much as I hate this place, it really is beautiful. It's completely classic, light gray with too many turrets to count. Windows were scattered around the towers in an asymmetrical pattern, some plain and others crossed with bars in patterns. Vines and moss were slowly creeping up the sides, with flowers of every color dotting the greenery. It looked like something straight out of a fairytale, probably because it was. My mother nearly fainted when she was told this was considered a 'summer home'. That idea was quickly dismissed as she concluded this was more than enough room for our little family. If you get her talking about it, she'll tell you how long it took her to decorate every room.

Walking into my home I realized how much I missed this place. I may say that I hate living in a castle, but I've managed to make my space truly mine and I've missed that space. Our butler and maid met us in the grand foyer.

"Jacob, Maria!" I quickly ran up to hug them.

They smiled, and both embraced me.

Jacob nodded, "Miss Alissa, it is wonderful to see you again."

Maria opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a barking dog.

As Audrey greeted Jacob and Maria, a blur of black and white came crashing into me. I was already sitting on the ground ready to greet my massive furball, so it wasn't a bad fall. Her name is Penny, and she's a Dalmatian. I used to help the Radcliffe's with all their dogs over summer breaks, so when there were more puppies, they let me pick one. I was attacked with licks from my dog as I tried to sit back up.

"Hey Penny! I missed you too!"

I was able to stand up and looked at my dad, who was smiling at the scene playing out in front of him, "Where's mom?"

"She is visiting your grandmother. She thought she would be home early enough to see you, but she should be back for dinner." He explained with an apologetic look in his eyes.

I smiled back and nodded, but I couldn't stop the repressed feeling from resurfacing. My mother, while I know she loves me, always seemed to distance us. The reason I was always closer to my dad, is because he was there. Not that my mother did any of it on purpose, but while I was growing up my dad was there for me more than my mom was. I always tended to lean on my friends anyways, but this helped to solidify that.

"I'm going to go to my room and unpack my stuff. Come on, Penny," I smiled to everyone and turned to go to my room with Penny by my side.

My home is so big that I have my own wing. Aside from the standard guest rooms and bathrooms, I pretty much had this section of the castle to myself. My parents let me pick what I wanted in each room, which I loved. This might sound really conceited, but I enjoy so many different things and hobbies that I love having a place to do each of them. Some rooms are bigger than others, my favorites are my library, my music room, and my entertainment room.

I walked through the familiar halls until I reached my room. I took a deep breath and felt Penny nudge my knee, a silent encouragement. I looked at her and smiled at the big brown eyes looking up at me. I pushed open the big oak door and took a step inside. It's official. I'm home.

~~~one week later~~~

CARLOS

I walked around the school, Dude on the leash next to me. He can't talk anymore, which was good but without Ali around, I wouldn't mind having him to talk to. It's been a week since Ali left, we manage to talk on the phone almost every night, and we are texting throughout the day; but, I still miss her. Everyone does, she knew almost everyone in school, so it was obvious when she left. Audrey had started to hang out with us, she wasn't as mean to us as she used to be. It was obvious she was trying to be friends with us. Ali probably told her to.

"Carlos!"

I turned around and saw Doug behind me.

"Hey man," I nodded, "What's up?"

"I decided to go home tonight for the weekend," He told me, I don't know why he is telling me this.

I gave a confused look, "Okayyyy,"

He smiled and chuckled, "I'm inviting you guys to come with me," at my still confused expression he continued, "You remember how close I live to Ali, right?"

Of course! How could I forget! I smiled, "Thank you."

ALI

I flopped down on my bed, finally done being a princess for the day. I must wear my crown while I'm home and I must act like a princess. My mom has dragged me around on all her 'royal duties', talking about how they will be mine one day. I pulled my phone out of the back pocket of my jeans. Unlocking it I looked at my background photo, it was a picture of Carlos and I dancing at the cotillion. It was obvious in the picture that we were soaking wet, but it looked like I was laughing at something he said, and he was smiling back at me. Lonnie took the picture without us noticing and sent to us later that night.

I opened the camera and took a picture of myself laying on the bed. Making sure to get the dark grey and black comforter in the shot as well. Going into my messages I found our squad group chat, attaching the picture I sent out a message saying I was bored and I missed them. I rolled over and put my phone on my nightstand. Sitting up in bed I felt something slide off my head. Looking down I realized that my crown had fallen off, the pins must still be in my hair somewhere. Feeling the back of my head, I let out a small laugh as I felt them tangled into my hair. Picking up the crown I went into my closet and sat down at my vanity table. After carefully placing it into an empty drawer I started to remove the pins and dropping them into a dish on the table.

I walked over to one of the built-in drawers and pulled out a pair of dark blue workout shorts and a black tank top. I changed, put on my sneakers and pulled my hair into a high ponytail. Looking over at Penny, I shook my head at the sight of her asleep in her dog bed off to the side of my room. I made my way through the seemingly endless corridors and finally arrived at a staircase. Descending the stairs, I arrived at the basement, I guess you could call it that, it sounds better than a dungeon. My parents renovated it into a gym with a space for gymnastics for Audrey and me to practice our cheerleading skills. Thankfully, the renovation included a rather large, and loud, stereo system. It's easy to escape from the world with loud music and a killer dance workout.

CARLOS

We all piled into the limo that would take us to Doug's house. We decided not to tell Ali we were coming to see her for the weekend, figuring it would make a good surprise for her.

"So how big is Ali's house?" Jay directed the question towards Doug,

Doug raised an eyebrow, "Well, she does live in a castle, Jay."

Jay rolled his eyes, "I know that, but I figured castles came in varied sizes."

Ben laughed, "Yeah, they do. It's not a huge castle, but its pretty decent sized."

"I don't mean this to sound bad," Mal started, "But I have a tough time picturing Ali living in a castle."

We all laughed, I never wanted to say it, but I agree with Mal on that.

Lonnie answered, "While she does reject the princess life, she has managed to make her own space with it and she honestly loves that part."

I smiled, "That sounds like her, making the best of everything."

Everyone smiled, and we spent the rest of the ride in silence. Watching the scenery go by, I felt a vibration from my phone. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I saw it was a message from Ali to our group.

"Guys, Ali sent us a message," Everyone went to open the message as I was laughing at the picture.

I could tell she was laying on her bed with her hair a mess and the crown sliding off her head. She had one eye closed and her tongue sticking out. She is beautiful, and I can't wait to see her.

~~~scene change~~~

We pulled up to a castle that looked like it came out of a fairytale, and I'm sure it did.

Jay whistled, "Ben, I thought you said it wasn't huge."

Ben shrugged, "It's one of the smallest in Auradon."

"Just wait 'til you get lost in it!" Doug exclaimed as he led us the front door. Pushing a button, we could hear the doorbell go off before it was opened by a man in a suit and stoic look on his face.

"Master Doug, I assume you're here to see Miss Alissa," the man nodded to each of us as we walked in.

Doug nodded, "That we are, Charles. Is she in her room?"

Charles closed the door behind us, "I believe she is in the gym."

"Thanks!" Doug waved at Charles and led us further into the castle.

Evie was looking around, "So you and Ali spent a lot of time here growing up?"

Doug smiled and reached out to hold her hand as they were walking, "Yeah, since we live so close to each other our parents made sure we were friends. We were always running around here, there are a lot of pictures of us to prove it."

I remember when Jay once asked me if I was jealous of Ali and Doug and how they were so close. I told him the truth, that it never even crossed my mind. If it was going to happen, it would've happened before we came over from the Isle. I have no problem with them being close, in fact, it works out well because I can talk to Doug instead of Audrey.

We followed Doug down a staircase after what felt like forever. As we descended, we could hear a hip-hop song getting louder. Once we reached the bottom we were in a gym with weights and cardio machines on one side and an open floor on the other side, surrounded by mirrors. That's where Ali was. She was dancing, and she was good; which wasn't surprising. Her eyes were closed so she didn't us standing there. Ben walked over and shut off the music.

"Not that we don't like watching you dance," He grabbed her attention, "But I do know how long you can spend dancing."

She smiled, "Hey guys," she ran up to me and I pulled her into me, it may have only been a week, but it felt like forever since I got to hug her.


	3. Chapter 3

**It has been awhile, and for that I apologize. But I am back with another chapter. Evie and Ali have a little friendship moment here because I realized I haven't written one for them and I love the idea of them being friends. So, I fixed it. Anyways, I hope you enjoy!**

 **DISCLAIMER: I own nothing, except Ali and the plot.**

* * *

CARLOS

I pulled Ali close to me, wrapping my arms around her waist as I felt hers go around my neck and her hands go into my hair.

"I missed you," She whispered to me.

I pulled her closer, "I missed you too."

She pulled away slightly and I closed the distance between us. I haven't kissed her in a week and I missed the feeling of her lips moving against mine. Someone cleared their throat and I was reminded that we had an audience. Reluctantly, we parted, and I had to let go of Ali. I smiled at the sight of her cheeks flushed slightly red as she smiled and greeted the rest of our friends.

"So, when's the grand tour?" Jay joked as he looked around the room.

Ali laughed at him, "Well the grand tour would take a long time to give. How about I just take you guys to my room for now?" She turned and started walking back up the stairs.

Doug laughed, "Trust me, the tour would probably take up the whole day."

"Wow, Ali," Evie walked next to her, "I didn't think you would be so okay with living in a castle."

I heard a heavy sigh from Ali and I grabbed her hand before she spoke, "I'm really okay with it, because my parents let me have my own space and do with it what I want. I think they realized that was only way I'd be happy with it."

She stopped in front of a large door before she turned to us, "I told you that I have a dog, right?" She was mainly talking to me.

I shook my head, "No, actually that never came up."

She gave an apprehensive smile, "Well, her name is Penny, and she's a dalmatian," She finished her sentence slowly.

Wow. I did not expect that. I didn't really know what to think so I just nodded, "Okay," I think she, and everyone could tell that I was just a tad nervous.

She turned back to open the door. I knew she told us her room was as least princess like as she could have it; but I still didn't know what to expect. Her room was large and painted a bright shade of teal. She had black and white furniture, with a large bed that had a gray and black comforter on it. There were several large gray rugs on the floor, and there was a dog lying on top of one of them.

Ali walked over to the dog, "Penny," She called.

The dog slowly opened her eyes and got up. Okay, this dog was huge. I immediately knew that my mother would all over her. The thought of that scared me more than the dog. Penny must have realized that Doug was here because she ran up to him as fast as she could. Doug smiled and knelt down, and Penny licked his face. Penny then went to greet Ben and Lonnie, before trotting over to me.

Ali showed up next to me, "She can probably sense Dude on you. She's just going to sniff you, she won't jump or lick you until she's used to you."

I held my palm out so Penny could sniff me, her black nose tickled a little bit. She went and did the same thing to Jay, Evie and finally Mal before jumping on Ali's bed and seemingly staring at her.

"Alright you big furball," Ali laughed and sat down on her bed and started rub Penny behind her ears.

The dog laid down and rested her head in Ali's lap as I walked over and sat with her on the bed. Jay walked over to a chair that hung from ceiling and struggled getting into it.

ALI

"Jay, do you need help?" I laughed as I watched Jay attempt to get into my hanging chair.

It was a wicker chair that I painted white with a black seat cushion and a fluffy gray blanket in it. Jay couldn't get it to stay still long enough for him to sit in it. It was quite a sight to see.

"Nope," he reasoned, "I almost got it."

Finally, Jay was able to get into the chair, "This chair is comfy," he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

I laugh at him, "How was school this past week?"

Mal shrugged, "The same as usual. Audrey has been hanging out with us."

"Still weird without you being there though," Lonnie looked at me.

Everyone else nodded and mumble sounds of agreement. I gave them all a sympathetic look and excused myself to get changed in my closet. Giving Carlos a kiss on the cheek and Penny a pat on the head I hopped off my bed and walked across my room into my closet. I picked out a 'mother approved' dress and changed quickly, sitting back down at my vanity was how I realized that Evie had wandered into my closet.

"Your closet is huge," She was looking though all my gowns hanging on one side of the closet.

I chuckled at her response, "Yeah I know," I took my hair down and shook it out, "Honestly, I wish I didn't need all this space."

She turned around and walked up behind me, grabbing a hairbrush and smoothing out my hair, "You always talk about not liking the princess life and not wanting to be a queen. But you've never truly explained why, at least not to me. Being a princess and living in a castle is something I have dreamed about all my life. I'm sorry, but it's hard for me to imagine having it and not wanting it."

"I can understand where you're coming from. It's not something I explain very often because I don't like going into it. But, as one of my best friends, you have a right to know. When I was younger I would always see my grandparents and my parents stressing about royal duties and freaking out about it. I never wanted to be like that. When Audrey and I were growing up, we were put through countless classes. Etiquette classes, ballet classes, voice coaching, horseback riding, princess lessons, you name it we took it. While I'm not going to lie and say I hated all of it, obviously I loved the dancing and gymnastics classes, but I loved them because I could be free in them. I hated the regimen, the rules, the rigidity of everything."

Evie sat next to me on the small bench as I continued the story, "Both of my parents tried to get me to more into it than I was, as first born I'm next in line as queen, and they both wanted me to take the throne. My father realized earlier that I wasn't going to change my mind, and while he still expects certain things from me, he respects that I don't want to be in this life forever. My mother, while she does respect my choices, doesn't agree with them. We've always butted heads over this topic. She still wants me to take the throne. I just can't imagine making my entire life fit into this little box of rules and responsibilities."

Evie nodded, "Thank you for explaining that to me, I can see where you're coming from, but I have one other question. Why are you going along with your mother now?"

I smiled and pulled my crown out of the drawer, "Well, I'm hoping that if I go with everything long enough and act the way my mother wants. Maybe I can convince them to let me go back to school."

Evie laughed, "Ulterior motives, I should have known," she stood behind me again and helped bobby pin the crown in place and placing a few strands of hair around it.

"Did you girls get lost in there or something?" Ben joked as Evie and I walked back into the room.

I looked at him, "Did you get my sass when I left?"

He shrugged, "Maybe."

I rolled my eyes and sat on my bed next to Carlos. Penny was still lying on the foot of my bed, "You guys want to see a trick?"

"Yes!" Jay shouted, without a moment of hesitation.

I laughed, "Penny!" She picked her head up and started to wag her tail at the sound of my voice, "Where's Ben? Go get Ben!"

Penny jumped off my bed and ran straight for our lovely King, "Mal you might want move!" Doug grabbed her wrist and pulled her away from Penny's target.

"No! Ali, why?" Ben shouted as he curled into a ball on my couch. Penny jumped on him just as he covered his head with arms, but that didn't stop her from licking him to death. "Okay, okay, okay! Penny you found me! You win! Heal, girl!" Penny eventually stopped and sat down in front of him. Expecting to be pet by her victim. Everyone else in the room was laughing hysterically, even Mal.

"That. Was. The. Best. Thing," Jay managed to wheeze out.

Ben stared daggers at me as he reluctantly pet Penny on her head. It was good to be with all my friends again.


End file.
